La Trattoria is an Italian-American dining experience in Old Town Alexandria. We pride ourselves on rustic, yet elegant cuisine that includes hand-made pasta and traditional comfort dishes. Our atmosphere is cozy and charming, while evoking the spirit of mid-20th century Italian-American culture. Fireside dining, an inviting patio, and live music several nights a week help to make a perfect setting for a night out.

We chose La Trattoria for this year’s Valentine’s night out. Overall, this was just an average restaurant, not trying very hard to exceed any expectations. There was a notable lack of any complexity in all of the dishes, from the caprese salad that started things off to generally bland entrees of scallops and veal. The presentation of the caprese salad gave the first impression that this was a sliced tomato with a dollop of cottage cheese. The scallops lacked any flavor and were presented on a heaping bed of risotto that was most notable for the quarter-sized pieces of onion that overwhelmed any other flavors in the dish. Our veal entree was smothered in a sauce that masked the lack of any flavor in the meat itself. The meal was not entirely awful, but certainly not something we would bother to go out and try again.

Though our wait staff were attentive the food service was VERY slow seems once they moved the dining room upstairs and added tables, when we were there it was full, after appetizers it took 30 minutes to get our main course. There is no more downstairs dining with tables which is too bad we always loved the dining room downstairs with bar that is now high top tables which are not comfortable for dining. We will come back but next time will order entrees only and up front :)

This fun restaurant serves wonderful Italian food. Don't miss the lasagna! We also really enjoy the linguini with clam sauce. They have a piano in the dining room and we really love the music nights they hold once in a while. And their mid-century lounge upstairs is fabulous!

Server was unfriendly and lacked any sense of urgency. Food arrived 5 min before we had to leave for the theatre. Although one in our party of 8 was seated late, it was communicated to the server 1.5 hours ahead that we had a time constraint. I ordered vegetables with my veal and received pasta instead. Risotto dish was bland. We have never NOT left a tip before until last Friday. Want this restaurant to make it! Hoping they can learn from this review.

Was greeted by staff as a member of the family even though my first visit there. Exceptional friendly service and gourmet food at reasonable prices in a romantic fireplace setting. A great piano venue!

I took my husband for his birthday last month to La Trattoria on the recommendation of a friend. The service couldn't have been any better! We were sat next to the pianist, and he was very kind to take music recommendations and also played Happy Birthday to my husband. At some point, the pianist played a game where the pianist would play a song and my husband would guess what it was or what movie was it from. The food was amazing (my husband is Italian, so he knows his food): we had fried artichokes, I had eggplant parmigiana (which is my standard go to, and this one was by far one of the top eggplant parmigiana's I had), and my husband had saltimbocca alla romano (he was impressed by the dish as he hasn't seen it in many restaurants). For dessert we had spumoni and tiramisu, both were delicious. On top of all of that, the service was amazing - the staff and the owners made us feel like we are part of the family, and at the end of the day, isn't that what great Italian food is all about? :D

Asked for a "quiet table" and we did get a great spot except it was 10 ft away from the great pianist that played the whole time. It was way too loud to have a conversation in my opinion. But he was great...

Positives: big portions, good service. Not so good: The food. Our calamari was lukewarm; all of the mains were bland. Fruiti de Mari was literally tasteless. White doughy Texas style bread for the table. (There’s a bakery across the street!) We dined upstairs and the room smelled off. Mold is evident on the upstairs bathroom ceiling. Added insult was the final bill. We dined here 6 weeks ago and it was delicious. What happened? Chef depart? Too many Italian options around to repeat a visit.

I found out after eating that an increased sales tax was/is applied to restaurant dining in Alexandria. My bill prior to tax was $179.00 (including a bottle of wine) my total bill came to $205.36 after tax. I didn’t mind the price because the food, service, and ambiance was well worth it. The manager had to go and recalculate the bill because she found it to be bit off as well. After discussing it with another manager, they found that a recent tax increase had recently been approved on dining out in the city of Alexandria. The restaurant experience was fabulous and I will definitely go again.

This is a superb, small-scale, utterly charming Italian restaurant with excellent cuisine. Such dishes as the risottos and pastas are all among the best of the kind available. The ambiance is intimate and delightful, the service first-rate. A fine wine-list as well. The tiramisu for desert is, again, one of the best I've tasted. The menu is very thoughtfully put together, not overwhelming with too many items, just right. The balance of meat and seafood dishes, and pastas, gnocchi, etc. is perfect. At the top of the list now for my wife and myself.

We liked the pasta with clams. The veal dishes were salty as was the scallop dish. The salads were very good with just the right amount of dressing. The service was excellent. The piano player was playing and the room is small so the noise level was higher than we would have liked since we were a table of five.

The food was delicious, but we didn’t get it until 1 hour and 45 minutes after we were seated. There is a disclaimer on the menu warning that it can take awhile to make the food, but this was an unreasonable wait time. The server was apologetic and comped a round of drinks (although my husband does not drink). We were also in the small upstairs room with the piano player, which was too loud to hear each other speak. I’d recommend sitting outside.

We had a lovely dinner. The ambiance is great--very romantic—and the food was worth the wait. It’s an experience, much more like a European meal where you take your time and enjoy yourselves. We had fried artichokes to start, which were good, but the real highlights were the ossobuco and the cavatelli. The former was moist and fell off the bone, and the pasta was fresh and had a beautiful texture. The desserts were spectacular as well—ricotta cheesecake and tiramisu, both made in house. There was a bit of a wait, but again, we enjoyed taking our time in these days where everyone is in a rush, especially as there was a wonderful pianist playing. We will definitely return!

This was the perfect spot for my birthday dinner. The piano bar was excellent along with the food service and atmosphere. We really enjoyed the evening and will be back. Kelsey even showed us around and upstairs to the special lounge and piano area. Great night great food and drink. Excellent service. Thank you all.

Disappointing meal and service. 1 waitress and a few bar staff for a crowded room of tables. Calamari was very cold. Risotto Csrbonara and salmon good, Caccitore fair. Didn’t really measure up to the great reviews we read before going.

Where is the chef?? The bruschetta had no olive oil, no garlic, and no flavor. The spaghetti sauce was very so so. The only thing we actually enjoyed was the garlic bread. Worst of all was the hideously metallic and bitter iced tea. We will not be returning.

Not quite authentic or capable Italian kitchen, food was ok, but not adherent to structure and taste that a better restaurant serving an Italian meal would have had. Bread was a terrible disappointment

After moving to the area earlier this year I was determined to find a dining experience that could become my reliable spot when I wanted a guaranteed wonderful experience. This evening I found it. Old town is known for its extensive list of dining establishments but La Trattoria stands above the rest. Everything from the service and the food to the building itself was just incredible. Even if I’m not in the mood for food this place is my new go-to for a quick cocktail. Job well done La Trattoria, you have a new regular customer.

Booked this on a whim, and so glad we did. We have been to several Italian places in the area and this was by far one of the best. The service was attentive but not overwhelming. The food was amazing. I would definitely recommend it. I’ll defiitely be back.

Atmosphere was very nice, as was the service. I was very disappointed with the “specialty of the house” eggplant parmigiana. Two round slices of breaded eggplant, buried under a mound of sauce, with very little cheese. A small side of linguine, no salad or bread for $16. Maybe because I am from NY and often dine in Italian restaurants I expected MUCH more from this dish. Not only eas it small, but had very little flavor. I personally would not return.